Puzzle.



PATENTBD DEC. 8, 190 3.

N. ,B. STONE.

PUZZLE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 12, 1903.

N0 MODEL.

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UNITED STATES Patented. December 8, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

NATHANIEL B. STONE, OF OUTLOOK, WASHINGTON.

PUZZLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 746,193, dated-December8, 1908. Application filed August 12, 1903. Serial No. 169,285. (Nomodel.) i

To all whomv it may concern:

Be it'known that *I, NATHANIEL B. STONE, a citizen of the UnitedStates,residing at Outlook, in the county of Yakima and State ofWashington, have invented a new and useful Puzzle, of which thefollowing is a specification.

The present invention relates to improvements in puzzles-of that classwherein the parts or elements are to be separated.

.The object, as in all devices'of this character, is to provide a puzzlethat is attractive in the difficulties to be overcome in solving thesame.

Further than this it is the object toprovide a. structure which can bereadily modified within the scope of the invention to obtain puzzlesmore or less diflficult of solution,

as desired.

Two embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, and

when the nature of said invention is thoroughly-understood it will beseen that modifications of the structures can be readily made withoutdeparting from the spirit of the invention.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective View of a comparativelysimple form of puzzle. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of another form. Fig.3 is a cross-sectional view on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is asimilar view on the line 4 4 of Fig. 2. g

Y Similar reference-numerals indicate corresponding parts'in all thefigures of'the drawings,

Referring first to the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 1, a holding-baris employed, which is preferably formed of a single wire. This barcomprises a main body portion 5, having coils 6 at its ends thatconstitute eyes.

The terminal port-ions of'the' wire are bent backwardly, as shown at 7,in spaced rela tion to the main body portion 5 and are provided at theirfree ends with books 8, that embrace an intermediate ofiset portion 9 ofthe wire, said hooks having a space between their opposite walls that isgreater than the diameter of the wire in order to permit the passage ofa cord, as is hereinafter more fully described. In connection with thisholdinghar there are employed looped cord elements 10 and 11, thedoubled ends 12 and 13 of which are interlocked. The. ends of these cordelements are formed into flexible eyes 14 15 and 14 15 which areinterlocked, respectively, with the eyes 6 of the holdingbar and embraceall the coils thereof. A ring 16 is placed upon the interlocked loops,as shown, so as to be freely movable thereon from end to end.

While there are several different methods of solving the puzzle, perhapsthe most difficult one is the removal of the ring 16 by the separationof the interlocked loops. This operation may be briefly outlined asfollows: It will be apparent that the eyes 6 each have what may betermed a tortuous channel leading therefrom to the ends of the wire, forby springing one of the hooks 8 inwardly a cord may be passed thereabout. One of the doubled ends of one of the loopsas, for in stance, 12israised to a position between the eyes 14 and 1 5, and this doubled endis then passed around this tortuous channel, following closely the shapeof the wire. In other words, the doubled end 12 is first passed throughthe loop 14, then about the first coil of the eye 6, through the twoeyes, and afterward passed over the free end of the hook.

analogous second step brings the doubled end directly into the eye 6, inwhich position it embraces all the coils thereof. The next step, whichis also of an analogous nature, carries the doubled end out of said eyeand between the body-wire 5 and the terminal portion 7. From thence itcan be readily removed, as it is entirely disassociated from the otherflexible loop. The loops are therefore separated,andthe ring mayconsequently be removed. 'It will he apparent that in this operation theeyes of the loops are never removed, and the principle to be observed isthe following of the wire by one of the doubled ends until a terminal ofsaid wire has been reached. This may be a very involved operation, as itis necessary to keep the loops from becoming twisted, so that in thereverse operations the passage through the eyes will not be interferedwith. It will be readily seen that by providing more or less coils inthe eyes 6 the solution may be made more or less difficult.

A different form of construction, but one involving the same idea, isillustrated in Figs. 2, 3, and 4. Instead of eyes arranged upon a singleholding-bar these eyes are arranged on separate devices 17 and 18. Theelement 17 consists of a main body portion 19, having coiled eyes 20 atits ends, the terminals 21 from said coils being twisted in reversedirections about the body-wire 19 and being spaced therefrom in order toprovide the necessary tortuous channel. One of the loops 22 has its eyes23 interlocked, respectively, with the eyes 20 of this device. The otherelement 18 is substantially heartshaped and is provided with thenecessary coiled eyes 23 and the terminal hooks 24, which must be opensufficiently to permit the passage of the cord. The loop 25 has its eyes26 interlocked in the eyes 23 of this heartshaped element, and said loopis also interlocked with the loop 22. A ring 27, placed upon the loops,is held against disengagement therefrom by means of the elements 1'7 and18. It will be readily seen that the operation of this device issubstantially similar to that already set forth, and no lengthydescription thereof is believed to be necessary.

It will be apparent that a puzzle constructed in accordance with thepresent invention can be made very difficult of solution or modified, soas to be readily operable. Moreover, these modifications may be madewith ease, as the same combination of features is always involved.

From the foregoing it is thought that the construction,operation,andmany advantages of the herein-described invention will be apparent tothose skilled in the art without further description, and it will beunderstood that various changes in the size, shape, proportion, andminor details of construction may be made Without departing from thespirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a puzzle, the combination with a holding device having an eyeprovided with a channel leading therefrom, of looped interlockedflexible cord elements, one end of one of the elements being providedwith a flexible cord eye that is loosely interlocked in the eye of theholding device and permits the passage therethrough of the interlockedend of the other element.

2. In a puzzle, the combination with a holding device having an eyeprovided with a tortuous channel leading therefrom, of loopedinterlocked cord elements, one end of one of the cord elements beingprovided with an eye that is interlocked in the eye of the holdingdevice, the other element being movable through the eye of thefirst-mentioned element and the channel leading from the eye.

3. In a puzzle, the combination with a holding-bar provided with acoiled eye, of looped interlocked cord elements, one end of one of thecord elements being provided with an eye that is interlocked in the eyeof the holdingbar and embraces all of the coils thereof, said eyepermitting the passage therethrough of the interlocked portion of theother cord ele ment.

4:. In a puzzle, the combination with a holding-bar provided at one endwith a coiled eye comprisinga plurality of coils, one of the terminalportions of the bar extending from the coiled eye and being associatedwith a rod to form a channel from said eye, of looped intel-locked cordelements, one of said cord elements being provided with an eye that isloosely interlocked in the eye of the holdingbar and embraces all thecoils thereof.

5. In a puzzle, the combination with a holding-bar provided at its endswith coiled eyes, of interlocked flexible loops having eyes thatinterlock with the eyes of the holding-bar and embrace all the coilsthereof.

6. In a puzzle, a holding-bar comprising a rod having coils formingeyes, the terminal portions of said rod being doubled back- Wardly andhaving hooks at their free ends that embrace the main portion of therod, and looped interlocked cords having their ends formed into theflexible eyes that respectively interlock with the eyes of theholding-barand surround all the coils of the same.

7. In a puzzle, the combination with a holding device having an eyecomprising a plurality of coils, of looped interlocked elements, one ofwhich is provided with an eye that is interlocked in the eye of theholding device and embraces all the coils thereof, said eye of theelement permitting the passage therethrough of the interlocked portionof the other element.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto aflixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

NATHANIEL B. STONE.

Witnesses:

JOHN H. Smcnns,

B. G. FOSTER.

